
Proceedings Paper
Optical telescope system-level design considerations for a space-based gravitational wave missionFormat | Member Price | Non-Member Price |
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Paper Abstract
The study of the Universe through gravitational waves will yield a revolutionary new perspective on the Universe, which
has been intensely studied using electromagnetic signals in many wavelength bands. A space-based gravitational wave
observatory will enable access to a rich array of astrophysical sources in the measurement band from 0.1 to 100 mHz,
and nicely complement observations from ground-based detectors as well as pulsar timing arrays by sampling a different
range of compact object masses and astrophysical processes. The observatory measures gravitational radiation by
precisely monitoring the tiny change in the proper distance between pairs of freely falling proof masses. These masses
are separated by millions of kilometers and, using a laser heterodyne interferometric technique, the change in their
proper separation is detected to ~ 10 pm over timescales of 1000 seconds, a fractional precision of better than one part in
1019. Optical telescopes are essential for the implementation of this precision displacement measurement. In this paper
we describe some of the key system level design considerations for the telescope subsystem in a mission context. The
reference mission for this purpose is taken to be the enhanced Laser Interferometry Space Antenna mission (eLISA), a
strong candidate for the European Space Agency’s Cosmic Visions L3 launch opportunity in 2034. We will review the
flow-down of observatory level requirements to the telescope subsystem, particularly pertaining to the effects of
telescope dimensional stability and scattered light suppression, two performance specifications which are somewhat
different from the usual requirements for an image forming telescope.
Paper Details
Date Published: 29 July 2016
PDF: 12 pages
Proc. SPIE 9904, Space Telescopes and Instrumentation 2016: Optical, Infrared, and Millimeter Wave, 99041K (29 July 2016); doi: 10.1117/12.2233249
Published in SPIE Proceedings Vol. 9904:
Space Telescopes and Instrumentation 2016: Optical, Infrared, and Millimeter Wave
Howard A. MacEwen; Giovanni G. Fazio; Makenzie Lystrup; Natalie Batalha; Nicholas Siegler; Edward C. Tong, Editor(s)
PDF: 12 pages
Proc. SPIE 9904, Space Telescopes and Instrumentation 2016: Optical, Infrared, and Millimeter Wave, 99041K (29 July 2016); doi: 10.1117/12.2233249
Show Author Affiliations
Jeffrey C. Livas, NASA Goddard Space Flight Ctr. (United States)
Shannon R. Sankar, NASA Goddard Space Flight Ctr. (United States)
CRESST/USRA (United States)
CRESST/USRA (United States)
Published in SPIE Proceedings Vol. 9904:
Space Telescopes and Instrumentation 2016: Optical, Infrared, and Millimeter Wave
Howard A. MacEwen; Giovanni G. Fazio; Makenzie Lystrup; Natalie Batalha; Nicholas Siegler; Edward C. Tong, Editor(s)
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